Minority Report (Pain in the Arse)

 

I have always been something of a minority and that doesn’t overly bother me, in any respect. Despite the very welcome resurgence in popularity, cycling remains a minority or less mainstream activity here in the UK.  

The same goes for several interests and passions I hold dear. I’ve touched on this and my introversion before. In commercial (and indeed other social contexts) I am perfectly capable. Borderline loquacious, given the right variables. However, I deftly swerve introspection and beyond the quality of my work, feel no need to seek attention.  

Provided I’ve done nothing to elicit a negative experience, I care little about whether people like me or not. Something I find very empowering and I’m very selective about those I allow beyond my veneer. Those who genuinely know me, describe me as a unique person, an acquired taste. I’d much sooner this, than a two-dimensional cardboard cut-out.  

January can be a long, austere month. Long forgotten are December’s festivities and cosy glow, often replaced by dull skies, unexpected expenditure and longing. Distractions can also take hold. These are fine, so long as they don't detract from physical, mental or emotional energies that would be better employed elsewhere. This typically strikes me in the workshop. Left unchecked, experimentation with gearing and other component changes can develop lives of their own. I’ll just...Is an extremely dangerous thought. One that can see ideas rapidly assuming lives of their own.  

Yes, winter can be a pain in the arse... 

Having ruled out saddle misalignments and similar issues, I am doing some trial-and-error miles with fresh longs and pads. My hypothesis is that some favourite bib tights and ¾ lengths are coming to the end of their service life, resulting in discomfort. 

  

While I felt able and had the grease out, I decided it was time to give my fixed gear winter/trainer a seriously good wash and perform the fork switch. I’ve stuck with the TRP Spyre SLC calliper for now since it was just a question of switching it over and the existing cable was fine. Annoyingly, unlike the basic Spyre, the SLC’s clamp seems more prone to fraying inner wires. Especially since I’ve always used a correctly calibrated torque wrench to snug everything down.  

Mercifully, the fork switch was plain sailing. I decided not to prune the steerer any shorter and simply added another 5mm spacer. I also gave the Stronglight headset bearings a clean and liberal helping of Juice Lubes Bearing Juice. This is closer to a putty than a traditional grease.  

Buttery smooth, friction is higher compared with preps like Park Tool Poly lube 1000 TESTED: PARK TOOL POLYLUBE 1000 LUBRICANT FOR BICYCLES (sevendaycyclist.com), not to mention, Peaty’s Speed Grease PEATY'S SPEED GREASE | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com). However, during the depths of winter, I’m more concerned with a grease’s ability to protect against water, ingress and corrosion.  

Closer inspection revealed some structural deterioration of the Kinesis fork. I whipped out the hacksaw and cut it up before I forgot about this and inadvertently passed it to a friend.  

Credit where it’s due, this took more effort than I was expecting. I’ve kept the crown and steerer, so it will live on as a drift for headset cups etc, since (a) waste not, want not (b) I believe my scrap piece of downtube met the skip during 2020’s pre-move, garage rationalisation.   

Since I was there, I switched to the Halo White Line/PD8 HALO CLASSIC RIM & SHUTTER PRECISION DYNOHUB DISC WHEEL BUILD (sevendaycyclist.com) wheel, with the CST Pika tyre, for aesthetic uniformity and improved clearance. I was surprised to discover the rim shod with a narrow, 559 (mtb) rim tape, not the 622 I’d expected to see. Testament to Schwalbe that it’s stretched so far without snapping or losing shape.  

The new fork is closer to a traditional cyclocross design, with slightly tighter clearances than the DC7 it replaces. 35mm tyres. If you’re prepared to ditch a front guard, 38 tops.  

Fixed gear winter/trainer freshly washed and waxed, it was time to pop it away and go for a formative shakedown ride the following morning. Unforgiving headwind aside, the fixed flew and everything felt exactly as it should, especially at the front end. Fate intervened in a positive sense, again. Talking of which, here’s my review of the Vecnum FreeQuence Suspension Stem https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/vecnum-freeqence-suspension-stem 

Roads and clear, starry skies to myself (save for the odd rabbit) I just sat back and cruised as fast as my legs could carry me- ejecting meaty chunks of phlegm as need presented. I am strong but vulnerable to chest infections, which linger painfully- long after the other markers of cold, or flu have passed. 

 

I am also very aware that old practices such as “running a cold out on the road” are potentially extremely dangerous. Certainly not something I’d advocate, but I do find that having recovered from a lurgi, riding is a great expectorant. Stubborn, residual nastiness that otherwise lingers and settles on my chest, shifts and is more readily expelled.  

Not something I’d want to subject others to, but fine on solo outings. Given the typically wet, mucky conditions, I was rather pleased Weldtite sent me this fabulous bundle of bike cleaning and protectant goodies, for testing. Oh, and here’s my review of the CST Pika Gravel Tyres CST Pika Gravel Tyres | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) 

 

Forced Hand AKA the Chain Again...

Upon reflection, Ursula had been trying to tell me something. There had been a periodic click, which I had initially attributed to a cleat not being fully engaged, or the rear mech’s barrel adjuster needing a quick tweak. However, the sudden increased loading on a climb saw it implode irreparably. Not something spare links would solve, so a 7-mile saunter home, which gave plenty of scope for reflection.  

Mercifully, I didn’t have to be anywhere until early afternoon, so that took some immediate pressure off. Upon my return, I nipped in for some warmth and to find one of the spare KMC I’d squirreled away. One transpired not to be what I’d requested but I still had a ready cut (106 links) electroplated model, so on it went- using the Magic Link joining system. Not something I’m a major fan of, but it didn’t give me any hassle on this very chilly morning, so we’ll see how it fares.  

Next thing I knew, A gooey mess was lining and coating some tools and other “to hand” essentials in a storage box, so I brewed up a bath of Citrus degreaser with warm water. Gave everything a good tickling with a medium-stiff brush-including the box itself, before rinsing and drying. This time, I lined the base with a bin bag to subvert another gooey encounter. Maybe fate was intervening with my best interests in mind... 

Staying with cleaning, Madison sent me this Finish Line Brush Set, which looks cracking value for money. Time and lots of seasonal scrubbing will confirm, one way or the other. They also sent me their Road Race Superlight Men’s Waterproof Softshell Jacket. A lightweight water and windproof model that packs super small (to the size of a 500ml (about 16.91 oz) water bottle), yet in theory offers decent protection from the elements. 

Letting imagination and fingers wander, I found myself contemplating long cage mechs and 11-32 cassettes for Ursula.  

Thankfully, the voice of reason and serviceable bank balances piped up. This was not the best use of my resources. Double checking confirmed the short cage Tiagra mech will manage 28 teeth- apparently, that’s with a road double, so according to my addled reasoning, a 32-tooth 1x10 mtb setup should be just fine. Measured in inches, rather than “gain” this will give me 74.9 and 29.4 high/low, respectively. More punch when descending, and more grunt when climbing.  

With this in mind, I found an 11-28 tooth Microshift cassette with an electroplated finish for £10 and would introduce that, once the existing KMC X10.73 needed retiring. One thing led to another, and I found myself reflecting on spare wheels. I had stripped a Deore hub from a dead rim nearly two years previously and reckoned it would “come in handy”. 

 

I’d decided it was time to build a decent spare rear wheel for the old girl- ready for duty when the XT/ Rigida Sputnik build wanted some truing and/or general maintenance. 26-inch (559) hoops are still readily available, but I wanted something suitably durable, but without the heft of its bombproof Andra40 cousin. A 32-hole Ryde Zac 19 came under my radar and less than £20. I’m very fond of Araya and Mavic rims but I’m not prepared to pay fancy prices for them, let alone anything with a “vintage” tag.  

Enter stripping, inspecting, and rebuilding the Deore with new bearings and the Juice Lubes Bearing Juice. 18 ¼ balls are what’s needed here, and I bought genuine Shimano. Given their price, there's absolutely no sense in going for anything lower rent, or indeed, opening the hub and re-using the existing balls.  

Dismantling these cup and cone hubs is remarkably simple and requires a couple of basic tools. In this instance, a 15mm cone wrench and a 17mm for the locknut, some stocky waterproof grease.  

The Deore opened with reassuring ease and the grease was closer to an oily gravy, but still offering some protection/lubrication. No pitting, or corrosion in the balls but as I said; better to replace them. I blitzed any residual grease with Green Oil Agent Apple Extreme Immersion Degreaser TESTED: GREE OIL AGENT APPLE EXTREME IMMERSION DEGREASER (sevendaycyclist.com), then rinsed with fresh water.  

Dried thoroughly, I packed the hubs with Juice Lubes Bearing Juice and then added 9 fresh balls each side. Being a seriously tenacious synthetic, they hold the balls super securely- I was able to switch to the freehub side without fear of them falling out.  

A little extra grease on the bearings (for improved protection) and axle, I slid the latter through the freehub side, adjusted the cones so a tiny amount of play presented before holding the cone secure and winding the locknut home. Satisfyingly smooth once more.  

As tends to happen, no sooner had I done that, then this Halo Spin Doctor arrived. Sealed bearings this time and reckoned to be closer to the Shimano XT, it’s a more obvious choice for a brand new build/ One I’ve left in the extremely capable hands of Mick Madgett.